


I Found You

by slowstitch



Series: I'll Find You [2]
Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Reincarnation, M/M, University Setting, basically just smoop because the last one was horrid, cute eren, cuter levi, not that sudden, smoopysmoop, sudden attack of memory
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-22
Updated: 2014-01-22
Packaged: 2018-01-09 16:18:12
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,872
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1148085
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/slowstitch/pseuds/slowstitch
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When the lecturer, tells the late-comer, Eren Jaeger, to find a seat, Levi is unimpressed to see the only spare is the one next to his. However, Archaeology 101 is quickly forgotten as Levi tries to figure out why this kid's face is so damn familiar...</p>
            </blockquote>





	I Found You

The first thing Levi noticed about the late-comer was his quite impressive state of disarray. From where he was sat near the back of the class, Levi could tell the boy’s jacket was on inside out and he could hardly see the boy’s eyes with the mess of his dark brown bangs hanging in front of them. He could however see the dash of red on the kid’s cheeks and the quick rise and fall of his chest that suggested he had run to the class. Idiot.

“Better late than never I suppose, hm?” The teacher mused, pausing his talk.

Levi smirked as the lecturer, Professor Pixis whom insisted we all call him Dot, raised a questioning eyebrow at the student who had shown up 10 minutes late and told him, quite curtly, to find a seat. Pixis was exactly what you might expect an archaeology lecturer to look like. Old, bald with dubious eye sight and even worse facial hair. He did however have a scathing wit and dry sense of humour that Levi appreciated.

Watching the boy climb up the steps and search the isles for spaces, Levi noticed something else, that the only spare desk in the cramped hall was the one directly to his right. Great, now he was stuck sitting next to the simpleton who couldn’t even dress themselves.

Levi had managed to snag the wall seat in the second to last row, using his sparkling personality and knack for death glares to make sure no one sat next to him. Erwin had warned him how irritating teenagers could be but Levi had ignored him, sure that they could be no worse than anything he’d dealt with before. After the third quick dismissal of a request to take the adjacent seat, Levi was inclined to believe his friend.

Levi tried his best to ignore the boy who gracelessly dropped himself into the chair at his side. The kid dumped his bag on the desk, hastily pulling out a single notebook that had ‘Archaeology 101’ written on the cover in what appeared to be bright pink marker pen. The handwriting was elegant and looping and Levi could not associate it with the scruff of the boy sat next to him.

Levi quirked an eyebrow and studied the student, more to stifle his boredom than out of genuine interest. The boy had impatiently shoved his bangs back and retrieved a pen from his rucksack before sliding it under his desk, though from how he was sat Levi couldn’t get a full view of his face.

 Levi was glad to note that the boy at least looked clean, and he smelt no tell-tale odour of a typical university student that he had also been warned of by Erwin.  He was clean, just not neat, hair mussed but not greasy, and clothes rumpled but not dirty.

The boy’s breathing was finally evening out as Levi watched him hastily scribble at the top of a new page in his book. As Levi expected, his handwriting was sharp and messy. The writing on the front of his book must have been a friend’s idea of a joke.

“Then in the second term…” Pixis droned as he continued his introduction to the course, pacing the front and twiddling his moustache as various photos of tombs, fossils and dig sites played on a slide show behind him. It brought Levi back to what he was actually meant to be doing and he tried to focus on the frankly tedious presentation. He was happy to continue the lecture without acknowledging the late comer at all.  

“Did I miss anything massively important?” Levi’s sharp gaze swivelled back to his new neighbour, an obvious message of _what the fuck do you want?_  He expected the boy to flinch like the other student’s had when he glared at them, but this kid simply watched Levi, expression open and innocent, waiting for him to answer. Levi’s eyes widened a fraction and the glower faltered.

The boy had the most remarkable eyes he had ever seen. They were an unforgettable combination of blues and greens that reminded Levi of the Caribbean Sea. Familiarity stirred in his chest as he studied the boy’s features with the unnerving feeling that he already knew what he was going to find.

Strong eyebrows that seemed inclined to furrow, youthful slightly tan skin and a pair of soft looking lips that were slowly turning down into a confused frown. Levi felt his throat go tight. It didn’t feel as though he were looking at a stranger, but as if he were finally seeing a face he had glimpsed in passing for years.

Levi realised he’d been caught staring and shook off the déjà vu, meeting the boy’s eyes again, trying to remain uninterested and unaffected. He didn’t quite pull it off.

“Not really,” His voice was uneven and he cleared his throat in annoyance, waving a hand to the front of the class. “Pixis is just doing the regular starter shit, what the course is and what we’ll be doing.” Thankfully, Levi had wrangled his tone back to the monotonous bored tenor he normally spoke in before the boy could pick up on anything odd.

There was a blissful moment of silence before the boy spoke up again.

“Do I- um… Have we met before?”  Levi was speechless for a second as he studied the boy who now looked sheepish and was fiddling with the sleeve of his jacket. For some reason Levi’s heart was suddenly working double time. He swore he knew that voice.

He honestly didn’t know how to answer that question. His gut reaction was yes, they had, but Levi held his tongue. Logically, it was impossible. Levi was at least 8 years the kid’s senior and there was no circumstance in his life Levi had been around youths ever, university was the first.

He really didn’t know how to respond to anything to do with this kid. His annoyingly familiar face, those exquisite eyes, the kind of adorable bed head and the fact that even though the moron was literally staring at the lining of the cuff of his jacket, he couldn’t see that it was still fucking inside out. He decided to play it off. Relax and stay indifferent.

“Doubt it.” Levi turned back to the front, scowling. “I wouldn’t forget eyes like yours.” _What?!_ Well so much for indifference.Levi had really, _really_ not meant to say that and he swiftly moved on. “Besides, I wouldn’t associate with a kid who can’t even dress himself.” Insult him, good. Levi was back in his comfort zone.

There was an incredulous “Huh?”

Levi smirked to himself. “Your jacket’s inside out, brat.” The name had rolled off his tongue without any second thought and Levi stiffened. He watched as the boy muttered curses and sorted out his hoodie. He didn’t seem to have registered the jab. Screw indifference, Levi had to know.

“What’s your name kid?” Archaeology was temporarily forgotten in favour of the puzzle this kid posed to Levi. Much more interesting and much more pleasant to look at than old bones.

“Uh-” The kid hastily yanked his hoodie back on. “Jaeger, Eren Jaeger.”

“Jaeger…” Levi tried the name himself. It felt natural on his tongue and stirred a memory that evaded Levi, like smoke through fingers.

“What’s yours?” Eren asked, turning in his seat and watching Levi intently, brows still slightly drawn but expression looking more at ease, if still a bit embarrassed.  

Levi felt a small smile tug at his lips at the brat’s attention.

“Levi.” He watched as Eren mouthed the word and his brows furrowed. There was a bubbling swell of affection that caught Levi off-guard as he watched the brat think, settling in his chest and warming him like curling up in front of a fireplace, familiar and comfortable.  

Eren looked up and caught Levi staring. The older student didn’t stop. Dark eyes immediately caught the flush that rose to tan cheeks and Levi thought to himself that he’d never seen something so beautiful.

 

* * *

 

The rest of the hour course introduction breezed along until Professor Pixis sighed and dismissed the class, wishing them good luck and warning them of tardiness with a stern look towards Eren. Eren hardly noticed.

He and Levi had settled into comfortable conversation during the lecture, never discussing topics of much consequence, mainly just enjoying the sound of the other’s voice and getting to know each other.

Levi had learnt that Eren was studying Archaeology with Anthropology and was sharing a dorm with his best friend Armin whom he had known since childhood. (He had also been the one to draw on Eren’s notebook) Eren’s sister was also attending the university but that was the limit to people he knew here and Levi could tell it made him nervous to be around so many strangers. Don’t ask how he could tell, he just could. He had also discovered that talking to Eren was as easy as breathing and felt just as natural.

On the flip side, Eren had learnt that Levi lived in a small apartment off campus he paid for with his part time job as a translator (consequently learning that Levi was half French) and was studying Ancient History alongside Archaeology. The more important things that Eren became aware of were Levi’s awful sense of humour and foul language and that Eren really didn’t want to stop talking to him. Levi’s voice resonated with something buried deep within Eren’s mind but no matter how he tried, he couldn’t place where he had heard it before.

At some point after Levi pointed out he had to get back to his apartment, Eren offered to walk him to his car. Levi accepted.

They walked out of the class building and into the slowly chilling autumn air. September was looking to be a cold one, trees already losing their colour and the sunshine losing its heat.

 Eren pulled his hoodie tighter around himself and Levi’s hands burrowed deeper into his pockets. Conversation had come to a natural lull as they both approached the car park.

Levi not-so-subtly shivered and walked closer to Eren. Eren was delighted to see that even though it turned out Levi had a good 9 years on him in age, he was at least half a head taller than the older student.  Eren tried to quell the coil of anticipation that set his heart hammering as Levi leaned into his side, giving another exaggerated shiver.

Was this normal? Eren had met the guy less than 2 hours ago. Did stuff like this even happen outside of movies? In all honesty, Eren wasn’t as alarmed as he probably should have been. The small amount of time, the bigger age gap… nothing was affecting the gut level feeling that this was okay. That Levi was okay.

To hell with it, Eren thought, and moved his arm around Levi’s shoulders, holding him firm against him as they walked. He felt Levi tense momentarily, before he heard a soft sigh and felt Levi’s arm wind around his waist. Eren felt as though his heart was about to burst from his chest and he couldn’t suppress his relieved chuckle. Levi’s only response was to hold him tighter and nuzzle his cheek into Eren’s shoulder and _holy crap that’s cute._

Of course what Eren couldn’t see was Levi’s shit-eating grin beneath his scarf.

They finally got to the car park and Levi tugged Eren to a stop beside a sleek looking black motorcycle. Eren looked at Levi confused, then finally caught on and scoffed in disbelief.

“No way is that yours!” Levi rolled his eyes, allowing himself a smug smile, and unwound himself from Eren’s grip, stepping towards his bike. It really was his pride and joy. Pulling out his keys, he unlocked the helmet from the kit compartment and turned back to face Eren who was running his hands over the seat, enjoying the open admiration in the brat’s expression.

“So I guess I’ll see you in the next class?” Levi asked, diverting Eren’s attention away from his inspection of the motorcycle. “Try and arrive on time brat.”

Eren laughed and rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment. He looked at Levi stood next to him and with a shy smile sidestepped closer. “Save a seat for me?”

Irritatingly, Levi’s heart fluttered. He scoffed but nodded anyway.  He moved to stand in front of Eren, one of his hands playing with the zip at the collar of Eren’s hoodie, trapping him between the motorcycle and the older student.

“You sure you’ll be able to find me?” Levi teased, tugging slightly and bringing Eren’s face closer to his. “Awful big class Jaeger… You couldn’t even see that your jacket was inside-out, how are you gonna see me?”

He could see the blush creeping up Eren’s neck and he laughed, revelling in the feeling of Eren’s hands coming to rest tentatively on his waist.

Eren met Levi’s gaze before letting his eyes travel over his face, from his delicately arched brows, to the sting of pink on his wind-bitten cheeks, then to thin lips and staying there. The words escaped before he could think them through.

“I’ll find you again.” His tone was soft but absolute as he moved his face closer to Levi’s, their red-tipped noses bumping. Levi’s now hooded eyes dropped to Eren’s mouth with a mischievous glint, as he gave his equally sincere reply, their lips barely brushing.

“I believe you Eren.”

It was like grabbing a live wire.

Levi fell back away from Eren, nearly tumbling down to the ground before catching his balance as Eren steadied himself with a hand on the bike behind him. Eren’s eyes were wide and struck with fear, chest heaving as he trembled against Levi’s bike.

Levi’s vision was swimming, all he could see was the bright light of the brat’s eyes through his swiftly tunnelling eye line and all he could hear was the thumping of his pulse in his ears. Breathing was becoming harder and harder as Levi tried to anchor himself in Eren’s eyes. He could feel the hot tracks of tears down his cheeks and for an awful minute he had a sensory blackout before he was thrown headlong into a memory.

 

_He stumbled across the clearing, forcing himself not to see the bodies of his squad. Every step sent knives of pain through his side but he ignored them. Levi had to focus. He had to make it to Eren. Eren who was sat against a giant tree, limbs on his left side a gnarled bloody mess and his face ashen and eyes closed. Fear clamped like a vice around Levi’s heart as he staggered onward and finally fell to his knees in front of his lover._

_“Eren!” Levi barked, shaking the brat by his remaining shoulder. There was no response._

_“Oi you shitty fucking brat! Don’t you dare die on me!” Levi drew back his hand and slapped Eren as hard as he could across his face. The titan shifter’s eyes flew open and Levi was home._

When Levi surfaced from the memory, firm hands were pressed against his neck and cheek.

“Levi! Levi answer me please!” Levi snapped back into focus at the sound of that voice. He reached out his hands blindly and latched onto a strong pair of forearms, struggling to keep the strength in his legs as his knees buckled.

Levi raised his head and locked eyes with who was holding him. Their colour engulfed him.   _His eyes… how did he ever forget his eyes?_

“Eren…” Levi barely recognised his own voice it was so choked with disbelief. He couldn’t believe it. Memories of a life, long since passed, flooded his mind. Memories of poverty, titans, soldiers and war. But most of all, memories of Eren.

 Eren, who had shouldered the responsibility of Humanity’s Last Hope and sacrificed himself for their victory. Eren, who had always been unashamed of his emotions, whether they were fear, anger or those he felt towards his Corporal…

Eren, who now stood in front of him, alive and whole.  Levi wasn’t sure if he believed in miracles or any sort of higher power, but at that moment his heart cried out in gratitude to whatever or whoever had brought his brat safely back to him.

“Levi.” Eren’s tone was thick with emotion and Levi swallowed a sob. The way he said his name made his chest ache with joy. Just the way he remembered from stolen moments in dark halls and early mornings between the sheets. Said like a lover’s.

Levi yanked Eren towards him and locked his arms around the brat’s waist, burying his face in Eren’s neck. For a moment, Eren was still, then there was a shuddering sigh of relief that made him tremble beneath Levi’s hold, before Eren encircled Levi in his arms, tight enough that Levi was sure there would be bruises. He didn’t care.

There were no titans in this life. No walls. No wars. No soldiers. Just Eren and Levi, no longer Humanities Last Hope or Strongest, and their whole lives ahead of them.

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> maaaaate i'm so glad i got this done though i'm worried it's not as good as the first one in this series but it made me grin and blush like an idiot when i wrote it so i'd say it works (at least for me)  
> also if i ever get inspiration for more creative titles to these fics i will change them


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